See, now that is how state attorneys are supposed to act. Argue FOR the state's law, even if it is a dumb assed law. If there is anything that deserved an attorney general saying 'i'g going to choose to not defend this law', this is it.

But no. We have the US attorney general saying it is basically ok for Attorneys general to make their own law.

The water was cold:I have no problem with people checking their virtual "maps"; as long as they do what we used to do with actual maps - pull off to the side of the farking road, or (hopefully) parking lot to do so!

What's next then? Anytime your eyes are averted from the windshield, you can get a ticket?

Cell phone users stop in the center of the intersection while they look for the "Report Stop Sign" button so they can get 6 points in Waze.

Then they flip off the other honking drivers with one hand while they check their texts with the other.

/Seriously, as a usually-on-a-large-motorcycle driver, I sit higher than passenger car drivers do and can usually see inside cars whether I like it or not. If you weren't already frightened to drive (or walk near a road), you can go ahead and start now.

jfivealive:The water was cold: I have no problem with people checking their virtual "maps"; as long as they do what we used to do with actual maps - pull off to the side of the farking road, or (hopefully) parking lot to do so!

What's next then? Anytime your eyes are averted from the windshield, you can get a ticket?

The water was cold:AVERTEDjfivealive: The water was cold: I have no problem with people checking their virtual "maps"; as long as they do what we used to do with actual maps - pull off to the side of the farking road, or (hopefully) parking lot to do so!

What's next then? Anytime your eyes are averted from the windshield, you can get a ticket?

AVERTED? REALLY? Wow, you are way beyond dumb!

What's next then? Anytime your eyes are turned away from the windshield, you can get a ticket?

Why don't more drivers use BlueTooths? It's not ideal and I guess it doesn't cover texting but I see drivers with phones up to their ears who are obviously talking, get a $20 BT. The only people I see with BTs are obnoxious farks who wear them in inappropriate situations. I had a professor who wore one every day at every lecture. My priest wears one during every sermon*.

* okay, that last one isn't true and I don't have a priest bit that would be funny.

The water was cold:I have no problem with people checking their virtual "maps"; as long as they do what we used to do with actual maps - pull off to the side of the farking road, or (hopefully) parking lot to do so!

The real question I've always had is: is it more dangerous to be lost & confused, or to spend 500 milliseconds glancing at your gps so you actually know where to turn. If one were to actually follow your theoretical instructions to the letter & try to pull off onto the side of the road every time there were any question about where to turn, then in an unfamiliar neighborhood one would end up weaving in & out of traffic to get to the shoulder or generally driving indecisively. Glancing at a GPS seems like the lesser evil in some cases.

Just underscores the problem with the "no phones while driving" laws which were totally un-necessary and criminalize conduct that is identical in nature to all kinds of other activities people regularly engage in while driving (eating, putting on lipstick, talking to other people in the car, fiddling with the radio, having a dog, looking at a AAA road-map, etc.) that are equally likely to create a hazardous situation, but are non-prosecutable UNLESS THE DRIVER IS DRIVING UNSAFELY.

There are already "reckless driving" rules on the books in all 50 states - and if you are engaging in activities that distract you in an unsafe way from your driving activities (looking at a paper map, trying to put hot sauce on your Taco-Bell at 70mph or talking, texting, surfing, map-questing on your phone) then you can be pulled over and ticketed for it without any extra laws on the books.

This puts officers, legislators, drivers, and courts in a terrible position. It is not written into law that looking at a paper map while driving is illegal. It is written into law that looking at a mobile phone map while driving is illegal. This makes the court step in and say "no, mobile phone map use while driving is legal" when that's NOT what was needed. Looking at a paper or mobile phone map while driving can be done in both legal (safe) and illegal (unsafe) ways and the officer should be able to treat both accordingly.

cefm:Just underscores the problem with the "no phones while driving" laws which were totally un-necessary and criminalize conduct that is identical in nature to all kinds of other activities people regularly engage in while driving (eating, putting on lipstick, talking to other people in the car, fiddling with the radio, having a dog, looking at a AAA road-map, etc.) that are equally likely to create a hazardous situation, but are non-prosecutable UNLESS THE DRIVER IS DRIVING UNSAFELY.

There are already "reckless driving" rules on the books in all 50 states - and if you are engaging in activities that distract you in an unsafe way from your driving activities (looking at a paper map, trying to put hot sauce on your Taco-Bell at 70mph or talking, texting, surfing, map-questing on your phone) then you can be pulled over and ticketed for it without any extra laws on the books.

This puts officers, legislators, drivers, and courts in a terrible position. It is not written into law that looking at a paper map while driving is illegal. It is written into law that looking at a mobile phone map while driving is illegal. This makes the court step in and say "no, mobile phone map use while driving is legal" when that's NOT what was needed. Looking at a paper or mobile phone map while driving can be done in both legal (safe) and illegal (unsafe) ways and the officer should be able to treat both accordingly.

This. Enforce laws we have. No need for additional except for lawmakers to feel needed. Like they are doing something.

The water was cold:I have no problem with people checking their virtual "maps"; as long as they do what we used to do with actual maps - pull off to the side of the farking road, or (hopefully) parking lot to do so!

Slightly off topic but why are dedicated GPS boxes so expensive? They're hundreds of dollars and a somewhat current phone does the same thing. Maybe the graphics aren't as good but you're just trying to get somewhere.

Mugato:Slightly off topic but why are dedicated GPS boxes so expensive? They're hundreds of dollars and a somewhat current phone does the same thing. Maybe the graphics aren't as good but you're just trying to get somewhere.

Do cell phone GPSs work where there is no reception? Serious question.

walkerhound:Mugato: Slightly off topic but why are dedicated GPS boxes so expensive? They're hundreds of dollars and a somewhat current phone does the same thing. Maybe the graphics aren't as good but you're just trying to get somewhere.

Do cell phone GPSs work where there is no reception? Serious question.

The GPS part does, but you have to download the maps to use offline beforehand or you'll just get lat/long coordinates.

walkerhound:Mugato: Slightly off topic but why are dedicated GPS boxes so expensive? They're hundreds of dollars and a somewhat current phone does the same thing. Maybe the graphics aren't as good but you're just trying to get somewhere.

Do cell phone GPSs work where there is no reception? Serious question.

Actually, yes. The GPS uses a separate radio from the cellular radio, and only requires a view of the sky in order to work. However, the phone does rely on data service to download the maps, so if you lose data service and the map you need isn't already cached, you're hosed.

CSB: several months ago, I used my smartphone to navigate through a cellular dead spot in western Sonoma County, in order to pick up a friend who had been stranded near Jenner beach when the bus she needed to get home never arrived. Most of the way there and back, I had at least 3G service on my phone, but there was one valley (not far from the notorious Bohemian Grove) where I had no data service at all. Fortunately, my phone had already cached enough map data to guide me through there, and the only obvious sign that I had no data service (aside from zero bars) was that many of the surrounding roads were missing from the map as I drove through that valley.

Mugato:Slightly off topic but why are dedicated GPS boxes so expensive? They're hundreds of dollars and a somewhat current phone does the same thing. Maybe the graphics aren't as good but you're just trying to get somewhere.

They've gotten significantly cheaper, but the price of manufacturing the device, licensing of maps, etc. isn't going to drop just because lots of people have a more expensive device that can also do the same thing.

One more thing about using a cell phone GPS: there are some companies (I know Garmin is one) that sell apps for iPhone and Android that store all of their maps offline, so you don't need data service at all to get turn-by-turn directions. That might be useful if you're planning to travel somewhere that you know you won't have data service, or if you really want to conserve your data plan.

anfrind:One more thing about using a cell phone GPS: there are some companies (I know Garmin is one) that sell apps for iPhone and Android that store all of their maps offline, so you don't need data service at all to get turn-by-turn directions. That might be useful if you're planning to travel somewhere that you know you won't have data service, or if you really want to conserve your data plan.

Google Maps also lets you download offline maps. Click the search bar, then scroll down to the bottom to find a link to cache the visible area. I use that all the time when traveling out in the boonies.

Ninja Otter:They've gotten significantly cheaper, but the price of manufacturing the device, licensing of maps, etc. isn't going to drop just because lots of people have a more expensive device that can also do the same thing.

I don't see how a phone is more expensive unless you have to buy the latest iPhone, in which case you're an idiot but at least the phone do other things.

/the graphics on the dedicated GPS systems are cool though. Almost scary in their accuracy